July 16, 2012 6:37pm EDTJuly 16, 2012 6:00pm EDTEleven players have between now and Friday to settle contract differences or face salary arbitration, which can become an unhappy process.

Staff report

Published on Jul. 16, 2012

Jul. 16, 2012

It's the last major act of the NHL's summer, barring a major player trade. Salary arbitration hearings begin Friday, with 11 restricted free agents in line to test their fortunes against their team.

Arbitration can be a harrowing experience for a player, and 2011 showed it's more likely an agreement can be reached before hearings are held.

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Only Nashville Predators defenseman Shea Weber went before an arbiter last summer. And already, several players settled up with his team.

The St. Louis Blues' David Perron cut a four-year deal to avoid arbitration. T.J. Galiardi of the San Jose Sharks, Jamie McGinn of the Colorado Avalanche, the Dallas Stars' Richard Bachman, Nick Bonino of the Anaheim Ducks and the Montreal Canadiens' Raphael Diaz settled up in the past two weeks.

Hearings are spread through Aug. 2, with decisions due within days of faceoffs.

According to the NHL players' union, the following players will face their team in arbitration unless deals are done:

A hearing is held at the request of the player or his team. Decisions are binding when a team requests arbitration. If a player makes the request, the team can walk away from the decision and allow the player to become an unrestricted free agent.

Oshie comes off the best season of an injury-plagued career, in which he had 19 goals and 35 assists. Perron is seen as a comparable player, the Buffalo News noted, because they were first-round picks the same year and have had similar careers. Perron got $15.25 million to avoid arbitration. Oshie could get the same as the camps talk before their clash.